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The Coega IDZ is a phased development around industry clusters with Custom Secure Areas dedicated for export-oriented manufacturing for companies located in the zone.. Coega offers a platform for global exports by attracting foreign and local investment in manufacturing industries. A strategic development framework plan for the Coega IDZ has been developed, focusing on infrastructure development and facilities for the core development area, which comprises 65 km².[2] The Coega IDZ is demarcated into 14 zones and is specifically designed along the cluster model linking related industries from the commercial cluster, logistics cluster to automotive cluster, and energy cluster.[3]

Coega was developed to attract investment from the automotive, agro-processing, chemicals, general manufacturing, business process outsourcing and energy.[3]

The Port of Ngqura is a deep-water port adjacent to Coega IDZ, 20 km northeast of Port Elizabeth on the east coast (Indian Ocean) of South Africa. The deep-water port, with a depth of between 16m and 18m, cost R10 billion and became operational in 2009. The Port assists the Couga IDZ as a means of transporting equipment and manufactured products in and out of the country.[4]

Between Coega IDZ and Ngqura Port is a 12-hectare laydown area designed to be a temporary storage site for abnormal cargo. The project which cost R9 million, was started in 2014 and started operating in April 2015.[5]

At the beginning of 2017, Coega had attracted 54 new investors with over R30 billion investment since it was established in 1999.[6] During the 2015/2016 financial year, the IDZ made R12 billion through investments.[7]

In January 2017, the IDZ reported that there were 36 operational investors with a combined investment value of R6.6 billion. In January 2017, in its June 2016/2017, Coega announced that it had signed 16 new investors valued at R11.69 billion and created 16500 jobs.

The Coega Special Economic Zone reached 7 170 Operational jobs and 9 330 new construction jobs both in the IDZ and new infrastructure projects were created in 2016/2017.

5 886 people were trained and the SMME spend reached 36% during the financial year of 2016/2017.[7] 555 people are currently contracted on the projects in the IDZ, and 70% of them are Nelson Mandela Bay-based residents. DZ investment projects and infrastructure development programmes created more than 83 405 jobs in the past eight years.[6]